Coinbase quarterly profit jumps on subscription revenue boost

Coinbase Global reported a sharp rise in second-quarter profit on Thursday, as gains in its subscription and services business offset a dip in trading revenue.

Retail trading volumes remained sluggish in the second quarter as investor appetite remained muted amid regulatory and market uncertainty, despite a rebound in crypto prices.

A bullish crypto market also prompted many retail investors to hold on to their digital assets in anticipation of higher returns, limiting trading activity.

Transaction revenue fell 2% to $764.3 million. However, revenue from the company's subscription and services unit — which includes businesses outside of trading — rose 9.5% to $655.8 million.

Net profit attributable to common stockholders rose to $1.43 billion, or $5.14 per share, in the three months ended June 30, compared with $36.13 million, or 14 cents apiece, a year earlier.

Net profit was largely driven by gains on the fair value remeasurement of the company's investment in stablecoin issuer Circle and gains on its crypto asset investment portfolio, Coinbase said.